Follow the manufacturer’s directions.
Your instructions will show you exactly where and how to install yours.

Check your Batteries
Test your detector once a month, and replace your batteries once a year.

• To test most detectors, you either push a button or shine a light. It may be helpful to connect this with a regular event such as payday. Pick an annual event, like New Year’s Day or daylight savings time, to replace your batteries - even if they still work.
• Never disconnect your smoke detector or “borrow” the batteries for something else.

Again, follow the manufacturer’s directions.
If your detector “chirps,” it’s probably time to replace the batteries. If you rent, ask your landlord how to check the batteries and maintain the detector when you move in.

Practice escape routes
A smoke detector can give you enough time to get out.

• If you have children or if you live with someone who needs assistance, discuss plans to help them get out. Practice and discuss fire safety with your family. A smoke detector won’t prevent fire, but can give you a few extra life-saving minutes in an emergency.
• Use the time to get out of your house and gather your family in a safe central location.

Put at least one detector in each sleeping area
One detector per sleeping area is the absolute minimum.

• If all the bedrooms in your home share a single hallway, place the smoke detector in the hall outside the rooms. You should have an additional detector outside every bedroom that doesn’t share a common hallway. If you sleep with the door closed, put another detector inside the bedroom.
• On floors without bedrooms, place detectors in or near living areas.
• A good place for a smoke detector in a two-story home is at the top of the stairs, since smoke from downstairs will rise along that path.

Know your rights
Before you move into a rental property, the landlord must install smoke detectors.

• A landlord must install one smoke detector outside every separate bedroom, and should test the alarm before you move in. As a tenant, your responsibilities include testing and replacing the batteries, notifying the landlord if repair or inspection is needed, and paying the rent on time. If a landlord doesn’t install a detector, or doesn’t respond to a written request for repair or maintenance contract your local fire prevention bureau.

Keep it clean
When you clean your home, remember your detector.